Second Chance
by Galadiel
Summary: After the great Battle of Hogwarts, when no-one is watching, Hermione sneaks out of the castle and instead of mourning over the deceased, she decides to save someone everybody has forgotten about. Little does she know this one act might change her life forever. Rated T for now, might change later.
1. Hermione's Secret

_**A/N:** There it is! A pairing about which I have been secretly wishing to write for such a long time... This chapter is a prologue of sorts, and I do not plan on making this story long (it will be probably 3 chapters, but if - when I finish - you'd like me to continue, I might take that under consideration). It takes place right after the Battle of Hogwarts. Please, do enjoy your reading - and review if you'd like!_

* * *

There were not many secrets they kept away from one another, sharing almost everything. However, there was one thing Hermione Granger had never told her friends... one thing neither Harry nor Ronald had never got to know – and one thing she would wish they would never come to realise.

After all, when she had returned to check on the Master of Potions after the great battle, she had not expected to see him alive. Barely, yes, but still breathing, his pulse weak as she touched his wrist.

It simply did not seem to be right as everyone mourned over Fred, Lupin or Tonks... and yet, hoping she would get there on time, Hermione snuck out of the castle, making her way towards the Shrieking Shack, right where they had left the professor before a couple of hours. The corridors were in so much chaos that no-one even noticed her; she did not even need Harry's cloak to be invisible.

As she ran, she kept one of her hands in her pocket, obviously hiding something. Her lips moved quickly in her Muggle habit of praying. Praying that it would not be too late... that she would be able to save this one life – just like she had with Harry, when they had both been fourteen, just this time without the Time-Turner.

She was said to be the most intelligent young witch – then she would make a proper use of her wits and just a little bit magic would be necessary.

Her breath was quite laboured as she burst into the room and knelt right next to the man's body, reaching for his hand. Closing her eyes, she kept whispering for a while – one could say she was casting a spell, but the truth was she was still praying – then stopped, her face even more focused than before a while.

And then, she felt it. A delicate pulse right under the paper thin layer of his skin. Without a second thought, she sent her Patronus to St Mungo's right before she began to try to stop the bleeding. With a deep sigh, she pulled her left hand out of the pocket; it was trembling lightly as her fingers straightened up, showing a little, wrinkled stone.

"Don't be dead yet," she murmured and peremptorily pushed the stone into the unconscious man's mouth.

For a moment, she was afraid she only made the situation worse as his body stiffened and his back arched. Holding her breath, she found herself holding his hand in both of hers, ignoring the fact all of his body was covered in blood.

"Do not die yet," she repeated, this time louder, and she would swear she could see his eyelids flutter open – just for a split second before her body protested against being used this much and the next thing she remembered was darkness.

* * *

At first, his body was so numb he could not feel it – as if his consciousness was floating somewhere out of it. After a while, though, he was mercilessly pushed back into his own flesh and pain hit him with so much strength that he groaned.

As he took a first deep breath after what seemed to be eternity, he realised he was in a bright, large room with no-one around him. The light around him was a pain to his eyes, so used to the darkness he had lived in for so long, so he closed them, trying to remember anything from before the awakening.

There was him... the Dark Lord... his snake... and then, a terrible pain as a high, cold voice told the snake to kill him...

If the Dark Lord had told the snake to kill him, then why was he still alive?

But then, just one more memory emerged from the nothingness; one he would have never expect to appear underneath his heavy eyelids: a worried, pale face of a young woman, her brown locks covering the majority of her looks in shadows... There were tears in her eyes... Why was she crying...? She was definitely someone he used to know. Lily...?

Another sigh left his chest, and he coughed. Had she not been there at that very moment, he was sure he would have died.

"No, not Lily," he wheezed to himself as a sudden realisation hit his mind like a hammer. "It was... Granger..."


	2. Cat-and-Mouse Game

"I still cannot understand how you can do this," Hermione frowned, grasping the handle of her suitcase. "You will regret it."

Ron smiled lopsidedly as he leant back in his chair, putting his feet on the table top. Harry pretended not to hear his friend's words as he busied himself with polishing the handle of his broomstick. He did realise that he should have done something with his life, and yet, for the past two months he had done just nothing but playing quidditch and hanging out with Ginny.

That summer had been truly one of the most wonderful ones he could remember, in spite of everything that had happened. The weather had been amazing – it still was, even though it was September already, every single moment had been spent in the company of his loved ones (at first it had not been quite pleasant as everyone had been mourning over Fred's and others' death), and then, just a couple of weeks before, instead of getting a letter from Hogwarts, containing – as always – a list of the textbooks he would need – he had got a letter from the Ministry in which he had read that there was no need for him to return to the school. If – and when – he wanted, he would be accepted in the Ministry. Therefore he had decided to give himself some time to recover and start his job in January.

Very similar letters had been sent also to his friends, Ron and Hermione, but although Ron had accepted along with Harry, Hermione had decided she was not ready to start her job yet – and asked Professor McGonagall to send her a list of what she would need during the school year as she was willing to return to finish her last year at Hogwarts.

"Do you really think I could regret not attending school when I can just stay at home and do nothing?" Ron laughed loudly, then reached for a big, juicy apple. "No, thanks, Hermione. You just go and study for all three of us, we know you like it."

Hermione snorted and grabbed her trunk, wishing her friends goodbye before she left the kitchen at the Burrow to leave for the railway station, accompanied by Ginny and Mr. Weasley. She knew she would be missing her friends... but her education was way more important than relaxing with them. She would be writing to them very often, anyways.

The journey passed calmly and safely. As they arrived at Hogwarts, it started raining, so she quickly puller the collar of her cloak onto her head and ran towards one of the carriages. Now even she could see the bizarre horses hitched to the carriages. Frowning slightly, she sat down and a couple of students she did not know followed her. It was strange not to sit next to Ronald and Harry, but she did not regret her decision.

Her thoughts soon flew to the beginning of the summer as heavy drops kept hitting the windows. She wondered whether the Master of Potions had survived... if he was alright... because yes, she had saved him, but she had had no courage to go and check on him. No-one actually knew about what she had done before those several months.

As she had fainted, someone brought her to the Hospital Wing, and she had spent a couple of days there, being treated, until she was well enough to go back home. Molly Weasley had suggested Hermione should have stayed at the Burrow – and the girl had accepted. There had been no chance of her sneaking out to meet her former teacher.

Now, though, as she returned to Hogwarts, she had, contrary to appearances, more freedom, and she decided to get to know something about Severus Snape.

"Hey, we're already here," one of the students that had spent the journey with her, nudged her lightly. She had got lost in her thoughts and had not noticed they had already arrived at the castle. The boy glanced at Hermione with worry. "Are you alright?"

Hermione nodded her head, smiling softly, but she did not realise she was actually pretty pale. Until now, never had she spent that much time thinking about Severus Snape. However, although not present, he had been bothering her all summer long. Funny – while at school, she had never cared about him much, even though he had been irritating her pretty much, especially as he had been tormenting Harry. Right now, she kept catching herself recalling all the moments she had spent in his company... and she knew that if the snake had done too much harm to him to survive, she would be missing him.

With her heart strangely heavy, she made her way to the Great Hall and sat down where she usually would have, just this time without Harry and Ron by her sides.

"Don't worry, they're fine," she heard from above her head, and she glanced up to see Ginny. "Soon, you'll get a letter or two about how much they are missing you, but actually, they will have some good time at home, doing nothing. I just wonder... how much mom's going to take before she'll make them do all the chores."

Hermione chuckled. However, she did not fail to notice that the Great Hall was not as crowded as usually and the conversations seemed to be quieter. Sighing, she bit her bottom lip and moved a bit so Ginny could sit down next to her.

"Welcome back after another summer holiday," at last Professor McGonagall stood up and spoke. "Which probably was one of the saddest holiday to some of you... though, I am glad to see so many of you returning to Hogwarts to continue your education."

At that moment, she smiled almost unnoticeably and clapped her hands several times. Hermione noticed that she looked at least a couple of years older than when she had seen her last time – but it was nothing strange. It must have been some terrible time for McGonagall, along with the other teachers.

For the first time, the girl caught herself not listening to the headmaster's speech. Her attention was attracted by something else as she started looking at the High Table and everyone sitting behind it. She could recognise the majority of the staff – apparently some of the teachers had been replaced... however, something made her stomach flip and she quickly lowered her sight.

He was there. And he was certainly looking at her. His face was distorted now and scarred, but she would recognise that look everywhere. Why she reacted to this sight like that, she could not say, but her heart began to throb.

"'Mione, are you alright?" asked Ginny, leaning closer to her friend and wrapping an arm around her. "If you want, we may go..."

"No, no, I'm completely fine," lied Hermione as she brought a smile back onto her face. It did not change the fact that she was now blushing deeply and there was a strange sparkle in her eyes that should not have been there.

He was alive. And it was all thanks to her. However, there was no chance he could remember that... he could not know it was her who had saved him while everyone else had forgotten about him. Nevertheless, she felt some kind of pride. No, she did not expect any payment for that... just the satisfaction itself was enough.

That evening she did not eat much, still feeling sick. Her stomach protested at any of her attempts to eat anything, and it was obvious Ginny was quite worried about her friend. Hermione, though, acted as if nothing had happened.

The feast seemed to have lasted forever, so when it was at last finished, she quickly stood up, ready to go and hide herself in the Gryffindor Tower. First, though, she needed to see Professor McGonagall to get to know the password. After all, she had been made a Head Girl – and it was her responsibility to take care of the younger students.

"Are you sure you're alright?" Ginny frowned deeply, but Hermione nodded and began to weave her way towards the High Table.

Before she got there, though, she felt someone's hand on her shoulder, and she stopped, turning back. She had not expected to see him there, though, so her surprised reaction was completely understandable.

"Miss Granger," Snape's voice was quiet and just as cold as always. His eyes just as deep and inscrutable as back then, when she had last seen him as a teacher.

"Professor," she answered, bowing her head just a bit, at the same time trying to avoid his eyes and trying to keep her glance upon his face. From this little distance his scars seemed to be even worse, and she felt terribly guilty. On the other hand, though, she did realise that without her help, his state would be even worse.

"Leave the responsibilities to the other prefects," he answered, placing his hand on her back and gently pushing her forwards. "There is something you must tell me... and I assume you do not want to gain a detention before the classes even start."

Hermione blushed. Of course she did not want to, however, there was no reason for her to gain one. She could not protest, though, even though she felt slightly offended. What was it what he wanted to talk to her about? Should she be nervous? Besides that moment when she had saved him, there had been just a few times when they had been alone together. No wonder she felt pretty scared.

Without a word, she followed him. She could feel other student's eyes upon her as she wandered right behind Snape towards the dungeons. Never had she liked that part of the castle, but now, as they entered the dark and cold corridors, the teacher seemed to be as if more relaxed. There was no-one to see them and maybe that was the case.

They passed by the door leading to the classroom in which they usually had their Potions lessons, and Hermione realised she had never been that deep in the dungeons. Their steps echoed through the walls and she glanced over her shoulder quite nervously, to check if there really was no-one following them. Maybe it would have been better if she had asked Ginny to go with her, but by that time, Ginny had already got into her warm bed...

She regretted she could not lay down. By now, she had already got quite cold – or maybe it was her fear that made her fingers cold and numb.

"This way."

Snape's voice, although quiet, seemed to be a thunder in this silence. Hermione nodded once again and took a turn, just like he had told her, to find herself in front of a bare wall. The man stepped a bit closer and whispered something, placing his hand against the stone and soon, they stood in the doorway of a rather vast living room.

So that was his apartment... Hermione had never been in any of the teachers' living area. Snape, however, did not pay much attention to that as he walked in and turned to look at the girl who seemed to be even paler in the greenish light of the room.

"Do come in and make yourself comfortable," he said in a voice that seemed to be quite irritated, as he gestured at her. "I'll make us some tea."

Hermione blinked, completely confused. After a couple of seconds, though, she entered the room and looked around. It was pretty big and furnished in a very simple way. Everything there was old but at the same time seemed to be quite cozy. With some hesitation, she took a seat in one of the armchairs which turned out to be even softer than what it looked like.

Several minutes had passed, and she realised not a single word had been spoken. However, she could not bring herself to saying anything, even as she opened her mouth. There was no idea in her mind what she could talk about.

"I wanted to thank you."

Those words made her so flustered that she blinked and raised her eyes to meet Snape's glance. Was he smiling? And if so – it would be the first time she could see him with a smile on his face. A true, honest smile, not one full of irony...

"What for?" she asked, then quickly remembered who she was talking to, and added, "Sir?"

"You know perfectly what for," he answered and handed her one of the cups. Keeping the other one in his hands, he sat down in front of her and fixed his sight upon her; Hermione did her best not to shiver. "You saved my life."

There was no possibility he remembered that... so maybe someone had told him that it had been her...?

"I had to," she mumbled, trying to take a sip of her tea, which turned out to be a bad idea; the beverage was still hot. Grimacing, she pulled back.

"Careful," he told her in a familiar, irritated tone, and the usual, cold look returned to his eyes. "You keep acting like a little girl, Granger, and it's way too late for you to behave like this. You are a grown-up woman already. What you did, returning to me that night, was a stupid act of heroism that showed that you are a real Gryffindor."

Hermione frowned. His words did not sound like a compliment – rather like an invective, and she could feel her heart begin to beat faster. But she could not say anything... she did not want to be punished, and Snape would definitely make use of this situation if she allowed herself to say something improper.

"I could have let you die back then, Professor," she responded in a strangely calm tone. "But I did not... because I knew that wouldn't be right."

"Oh, of course you did," he answered, and the corner of his lips twitched. "Every little hero of your house knows that. Funny that many of them simply ignored that knowledge. They call themselves heroes... and yet none of them returned to me, letting me die. I guess that was the price they wanted me to pay."

His words were bitter, and Hermione felt ashamed. Quickly, she lowered her sight and focused on the amber hue of her tea.

"You could have let me die back then, and yet, you were the only one to get back to me, huh? Bezoar, I guess. It was not enough for such a venom, and yet, it worked surprisingly well. At least well enough for me to survive until they took me to St. Mungo's."

He remembered way too much. Hermione, acting against her own will, stood up and put the cup on the table, wanting to leave, but it turned out that where the entrance had once been, there was a solid wall.

"It won't open until I want it to," said Snape, and she looked at him angrily. "Now, sit down, Granger, now as I'm still kind."

There was no kind note in his voice, and yet, Hermione decided to follow his words. Taking a deep breath to calm down, she slumped down in the armchair. Her fingers sank into the armrests as she glared at the man before her.

"What do you need me here for?" she asked, this time not caring about the tone of her voice, and she would have sworn she could see a triumphant smile upon his lips.

"Be nicer, Granger, the fact you saved my life doesn't change the fact that I am still your teacher," he hissed, "and I am still capable of punishing you. I could take some points from your house. Or everyone will know that the Head Girl was the first one this year to gain a couple of weeks of detention."

Hermione blushed, gritting her teeth, but said nothing.

"Oh, now we're quite nice, aren't we," he murmured in a strangely singsong voice. "I am still considering that detention, though... there's so much I still have to talk to you about..."

"There's nothing we should be talking about, Professor. It's already late, and I am still a student. I have no right to loiter around the castle. And the Gryffindor Tower is really far from here. You should let me go."

"Of course, I will let you go, and soon, I will stop you in the middle of some corridor... and since you are not allowed to be outside your bedroom at this time, you will get a couple of weeks of detention," answered Snape, apparently quite amused.

Hermione opener her mouth, but closed it right after, not sure what to say. He was making fun of her while she simply wanted to get back to her dormitory.

"There is a way we could avoid that," he added after a moment, as he had glutted his eyes with her desperation and embarrassment.

Hermione looked at him with hope, and Snape smirked. Oh, would it be crushed when she got her response...

"You will spend your night here."


	3. Obsession

" _Excuse me_?"

The tone in Hermione's voice was so shocked that she was not able to hide that. Perhaps she had not even tried to do so; the way she stared at Snape at that very moment was enough to betray her confusion and terror. Yes, terror. Because what else could she feel knowing her teacher whom she had rescued just a couple of months before now wanted her to stay with him for the whole night? Moreover, in _his_ room?

All of this seemed to amuse Snape quite a lot as he watched the poor girl try to find a response to his suggestion. Well, it was not really a suggestion, but it was definitely much safer to call it like this. Granger had always been a clever girl; was she clever enough to find a way out of this trap? Because Snape was quite sure he had prepared it well enough for her not to be able to escape.

Oh, it was not his point to scare her away, or to hurt her, however, it would be a lie to say it was not entertaining to watch her cringing like this. It would be cruel to prolong it forever more so he knew he would need to stop it at some point.

She had every right to be scared. After all, there he was, a man who was supposed to lay buried in ground for some, and yet, he was still safe and sound, just his face marked with more scars. He was her teacher and there were so many ways he could force her to stay there, or to do whatever he wanted her to. And she, while being so clever, opposed to breaking the rules. Maybe being so smart she did not want to stand up to her teacher.

"I have just asked you to stay here with me, for the whole night," he replied, his silky voice filling the room. Having made a step forwards, he found himself strangely close to the bushy-haired young woman.

They were so much alike. Although she had come from a family with not even a drop of magical blood in their veins, when he looked at her he could see a bit of himself. Full of ambitions, full of talents that were looked down upon.

It also made her in some strange way similar to his first love, Lily. There was also something similar between those two girls in the way they looked. Of course, Hermione's hair and eyes were darker, but they had the same shape of lips which curled in the same type of sweet smile – and sometimes he could see the same frown upon her face as he had on Lily's.

But she was neither him nor Lily. It was her own person. Hermione Granger. And it was her, not anyone else, even Lily, who had rescued him and who had caught his eye. How come he had got so interested in such a girl?

"Professor, as much as I... usually respect... teachers' orders..." she started but stopped almost as soon as she had begun.

"You make it sound so bad, Granger," he flinched. "It was no order but a mere suggestion that would save you the problems of getting back to Gryffindor Tower so late at night."

The tone of his voice had not changed even a little bit; it was still quiet and delicate, just like the way he looked at her. Never before had she seen him glancing like that at anyone, let alone a student.

Once again, Hermione looked back at the door behind her. Getting away would mean risking facing Filch and losing some House Points, which she did not want to happen. After all, the term was still just to begin. How could she allow that to happen? On the other hand, though, staying there with Snape... what actually did he want to talk about? There was nothing they should explain to each other. Yes, she had made sure he would be safe after the war, but nothing more. She had not been the one to heal him. Her deeds could not be called brave – she had only done what was right. In fact, she was surprised no-one else had actually done that.

"I must confess I wish you had been in Slytherin," he added out of sudden. "You would have made so much more progress... Learnt how to use all of your talent and ambition instead of wasting it away."

"I believe I can do this without being in your House, sir," she dared say before she could bite her tongue. Would Snape use this chance to punish Gryffindor for her insolence? She hoped not. She would need to be more careful about what she was saying.

"Sit down."

That was the only reply she could hear. _Sit down_. Really? After all she had told him? Even though it was a perfect chance for him to punish the House he had always hated so much? Once again, she looked at him with shock but finally fulfilled his request and took a seat in one of the black, shabby armchairs. Nevertheless, she dared not lean back; actually, she sat on the very edge of the seat, just like back then, during the first Potions class...

Oh, had she changed since then...

Back then, she had been just an irritating first-year, a know-it-all driving him mad. But had he not thought of Lily back then? Lily had been just like that during her first year at Hogwarts. Snape could not help but smile at the memory, and that had to be caught by Hermione's eye.

"It... it is not my intention," he began rather carefully and the girl could hear a slight hesitation to his voice, which surprised her quite a lot, "to scare you away. If I'm to be honest... it's quite the opposite."

He propped himself against the desk and looked at her. Now, as he had told her to sit down, he had been making sure to keep a proper distance from her; maybe their being so close together had been making her so uncomfortable.

"I still don't understand, sir," she spoke after a moment, then bit her lips staring at her knees. Thoughts kept racing across her head and she could not gather them up. And if she did not, he would definitely win that night. And it would mean she would stay there for God knows how long, talking about things she probably did not want to talk. "Why do you need me here?"

"For talking," responded Snape, his lips curling into a weird smile. His hands, though, closed on the edge of the desk; however, that was the only sign that he was much more nervous than he would like her to know. "I do not want to do anything else to you. Unless there is something more _you_ would like to do."

Completely shocked and confused, Hermione forgot that she should be staring at her lap, and having looked up, she allowed her eyes to meet Snape's. The man could not help but snicker at her reaction.

"I need to know why you did what you did, Granger," he said quickly, before she was able to comment on his previous words.

"I have already told you, sir," she replied, realising she was still holding the cup of tea he had given her. It had seemed to be so long since the moment she had entered that room. By now, all of her friends would have already fallen asleep... maybe even Filch had gone to sleep already. If so, there was a chance... "I could not let you die there and then. You were still alive and it was a human thing to do..."

"... and yet somehow no-one but you did the same thing," he cut in.

"For God's sake, I am just as surprised as you are!" she cried forgetting about her promise to keep her nerves in check. "I... I have no idea why no-one else did that. But I was sure I could see you still breathing... I had to try..."

"Which meant risking your life to protect a man you've never liked, didn't it, Granger?" he asked, his eyebrow rising.

Of course, he was right but she was not going to tell him that.

"First of all, you were my teacher," she replied fiercely before adding quickly, "sir."

"And it was a chance for you to get rid of the teacher you disliked. No... the man you despised. The nature would have done something your friends had attempted but turned out to have no guts to do it... is that not right? You all wanted me to die. And yet, for some reason you were back in the Shack..."

Hermione had tears in her eyes. For some reason it stung his heart with pain. At that very moment, he wanted to approach her and wipe her tears away. Nevertheless, he did not allow himself to do such a thing; his hands clenched on the desk even more.

"Are you disappointed or angry that I did that?" she asked, her voice trembling with emotion he could not quite understand. No... it was not one emotion. It was a strange mixture of so many; that was why he could not tell them apart.

"I was..." he admitted after a longer while. "At first, I was. Back then, when the snake attacked me... I wanted to die. I had done everything in this life I should have. I had suffered a lot and death seemed to be the only thing that could... relieve me. The only way to escape the life that had caused so much pain to me... I don't expect you to understand me... but back then... yes, I wanted to die. I just... did not want to live anymore. There was no point in living..."

Hermione found herself suddenly at loss. His words made her heart beat faster which took her breath away. No longer could she look up at his scarred face.

"Did you want me to apologise to you for making you live on, sir?" she asked only, her voice faltering.

"No," he answered at once with more power to his voice. "I need to thank you once again."

In sheer surprise, she let her eyes find his face once again and, to her surprise, she discovered he was still looking directly at her. For some reason her heart picked up its pace; blood kept pounding in her ears.

"Thank me?" she repeated flatly.

"Yes," he nodded, then pushed himself away from the desk and approached her. Reaching his hand out, she thought he would touch her hand but instead he seized her cup. "The tea has gone completely cold..."

At that moment Hermione was completely convinced that he was trying to avoid answering; she, however, needed to know.

"Thank me?" she repeated once again. "But what for?"

A heavy sigh escaped Snape's chest, but he did not look up at her again.

"Do not get me wrong, Granger," he spoke after a longer while. "Many would consider it inappropriate and I can see why, for it is definitely not a... desirable feeling..." Closing his eyes, he rubbed his forehead with the same hand that had previously touched the cup. Just the tips of his fingers had brushed her hand on the way. It must have been just a coincidence...

"You make me confused, sir," she confessed, but he made an impatient gesture to hush her.

"Do you think _I_ am not confused? I wish I weren't! But all that keeps haunting me..." he said in a tone she had never heard coming from his lips. Never before had he put so much feeling into it. Well, yes, it was true that she had heard him speak with rage or exasperation, but it was nothing like that...

Perhaps that was the reason why she stayed completely silent, letting him say what he wanted to say. Or maybe it was her curiosity...

"You wouldn't leave my thoughts all summer, Granger," he added after a moment, sounding a bit as though he was angry at her for that. As if she had anything to do with it. "All summer long, I could think of anything else but you. Your motives... the fact you risked everything just to protect me... Once again, I understood that there is a sense in life."

When he finished, he allowed himself to look at her face again. To his shock, he realised he was much closer to her than he remembered stepping. There she was, sitting in the armchair and glancing at him with bewilderment in her brown eyes, unable to say a word. But she did not try to escape, even though if she tried that now, he probably would make no attempt to stop her, so defenceless he was.

And it could be seen in his eyes. When Hermione looked at Snape, she realised his eyes were no longer two dark, empty tunnels. But it was not the first time she had ever seen it. That reminded her why she had returned to him that night...

"You said yourself, sir, you are my teacher... we couldn't..."

"No-one has to know," he whispered feverishly. "It is just a year..."

His words and the way he uttered them made her think about Ron and Harry. Especially Ron. He did not know... never had she dared tell him about Snape... about the pity she had felt when she had seen him lying there... or maybe there had been more to it than just pity. When Snape had looked at Harry just a split second before going completely limp, she had seen in his face something she had soon realised she wanted to see more. At that moment she had thought it was out of curiosity, or maybe because he was just a man... but now...

"We couldn't," she repeated, sinking as deep into the armchair as she could.

"You sound like a coward you are not, Granger... I know... I know it is all wrong, it should not be like that." Out of sudden, the back of his fingers gently touched her cheek and she quickly closed her eyes, having no courage to look up at him. "But you rescued me twice. You brought some meaning to my life, to the life I thought I was done for... Call me obsessed, but I cannot imagine my life without you in it anymore."

Yes, he was definitely obsessed. Hermione knew that but at the same time she tried to count how many times _she_ had thought about Snape that summer.

"You give me too much credit for that, sir, I swear I have done nothing more than what anyone else would have..." she protested half-heartedly, her breath taken away by him being this close to her, his nose just an inch away from hers.

"Would you really so easily take away the life you have protected?" he asked quietly.

She could not answer. He was definitely too close.


End file.
